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mlacyphd.bsky.social
Mike Lacy
@mlacyphd.bsky.social
1.1K followers 1.2K following 140 posts
#OpenScience supporter, I work @Addgene.bsky.social curating DNA and web content. Previously worked at ASCB, publishing, Yale Biophysics PhD. He/him
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mlacyphd.bsky.social
Mike Lacy @mlacyphd.bsky.social · Nov 12
👋 Intro for new folks:
I'm a scientific curator at @addgene.bsky.social. You might see my blog posts or get emails from me about depositing plasmids. Our team mainly works behind the scenes cleaning up data, making/updating webpages, and more. I'm always on the lookout for cool new science to share!
Reposted by Mike Lacy
artologica.net
Four new algorithm watercolors! Perfect for neuroscientists, deep thinkers, and zombies #sciart www.etsy.com/shop/artolog...
4 brain watercolors with black text about brains
November 21, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
artologica.net
Layered ink paintings with neuron images and half-legible quotes from Hildegard of Bingen artologica.etsy.com
You're not gonna find this at Macy's #sciart
layered ink painting with neuron image in blue and purple layered ink painting with neuron image in blue and purple
November 21, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
New at Addgene! MitoTRACER, a cre-lox based reporter of cell-to-cell mitochondrial transfer. Used to study transfer from nerve to cancer cells and its impact on metabolism and metastasis.
By @greletlab.bsky.social

🔗 https://twp.ai/4itAyW
New at Addgene!
November 24, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
hhmi.org
Calling all rising juniors & seniors: Interested in biological or biomedical research? Applications for our ’26 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program are now open! Nine weeks, hands-on research, & mentorship from some of the nation’s top scientists — learn more: bit.ly/CechFellows
Summer Undergraduate Research Experience | HHMI
The Cech Fellows Program is a paid, nine-week summer research experience empowering the next generation of scientific leaders.
bit.ly
November 18, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
prelights.bsky.social
Reliable actin labelling in expansion #microscopy 🔬

Beautiful #preprint from Olivier Mercey, @lreymond.bsky.social & team @dudinlab.bsky.social @centriolelab.bsky.social

Read the latest #preLight from @kanishka03.bsky.social ⬇️👀
prelights.biologists.com/highlights/h...
HAK-actin, U-ExM-compatible probe to image the actin cytoskeleton - preLights
HAK-actin is a new probe that may help researchers see the actin cytoskeleton in sharper detail using expansion microscopy.
prelights.biologists.com
November 19, 2025 at 11:58 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Who doesn't love a library? A pooled library, that is! Grab a hot drink and your reading glasses and enjoy browsing the libraries Addgene has to offer:
https://twp.ai/4it3AO
A venn diagram comparing Libraries and Pooled Libraries. The Libraries circle reads "made of paper" and shows an illustration of books. The Pooled Libraries circle reads "made of DNA (and sometimes lentivirus)" and shows an illustration of plasmids. In the overlap of the two circles, three entries read: "incredible community driven resource; source of new discoveries; barcodes."
November 19, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
plantophagy.bsky.social
Until we recognise that resilience requires inefficiency – that robust systems must have slack – we’re just optimising our way towards collapse. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
After I burned out, physics helped me understand what had happened to me – and to move on | Zahaan Bharmal
I thought hard work equalled success. I had to realise that’s not always how it works, in science or in life, says Google employee Zahaan Bharmal
www.theguardian.com
November 16, 2025 at 10:19 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Need a better way to purify your favorite plant proteins? 🎣 Check out the Catch & Release toolbox! Find plasmids here: www.addgene.org/browse/artic...
Thanks @kunzlab.bsky.social for sharing!
November 13, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Cool work from our neighbors at @cultivarium.bsky.social using components from the POSSUM Toolkit! What will they (or you!) find next?
Check out the toolkit here: www.addgene.org/kits/cultiva...
November 12, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
We’re looking forward to #SfN25! 🧠

Tell us about your research using materials available through Addgene, so we can celebrate your science!

Learn more: https://twp.ai/4it0di
Dark blue banner with science illustrations and text: “Join our Addgene Ambassador Program for Neuroscience 2025.”
November 12, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Thanks for sharing @piatkevich.bsky.social! 💡 These red calcium indicators and more are featured in our Fluorescent Protein Biosensors Collection: www.addgene.org/fluorescent-...
piatkevich.bsky.social piatkevich.bsky.social @piatkevich.bsky.social · 15d
Our red calcium indicator, FRCaMPi, and its soma-localized version, SomaFRCaMPi, are now available from @addgene.bsky.social in various vectors, along with all the sensors used for benchmarking. www.addgene.org/browse/artic...
November 12, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
bwjones.bsky.social
Does anyone know of good antibodies to tdTomato and GFP that they are happy with for ultrastructure or glut fixed tissues?

#SciSky 🧪
November 11, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
kurianlab.bsky.social
small SOS:

My lab is struggling to use Napari to visualize and work with MERFISH images. Can one of you kind experts give my student a few pointers?

@mads100tist.bsky.social
November 11, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
blog.addgene.org
Hot Plasmids: Fall 2025
twp.ai
November 11, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Fresh batch of Hot Plasmids here! Find new tools for:
🧠 Neural cell-surface proteomics
🔋 Nerve-to-cancer mitochondrial transfer @greletlab.bsky.social
🔬 Red calcium biosensors @massecklab.bsky.social & @piatkevich.bsky.social
✂️ CRISPRa-AAV for adipocytes @nadavahituv.bsky.social
& more!
November 11, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
prereview.bsky.social
Additionally, applications are now open to join the 2026 Cohort of PREreview Champions.

Learn more about what to expect and apply today: content.prereview.org/2026-prerevi...

Please consider sharing this opportunity with others in your community!

Thank you!
2026 PREreview Champions - Apply NOW
Applications are now open to join the 2026 PREreview Champions Program! As we wrap up another amazing year of reflections, actions, and collaborations spearheaded by a fantastic cohort of 2025 Champio...
content.prereview.org
November 10, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
hansonmark.bsky.social
We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing:

a 🧵 1/n

Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820
Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below. 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. A figure detailing the drain on researcher time. 1. The four-fold drain 1.2 Time The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce, with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure 1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs, grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time. The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many review demands. Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in ‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier, local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision. A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below: 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
addgene.bsky.social
Are you presenting research at #SfN25 that uses materials available through Addgene?

Join our Addgene Ambassadors program!

Learn more: https://twp.ai/4ispwV
DNA, antibody, and virus images with text "We want to spotlight your science at neuroscience 2025"
November 6, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
samuelmoore.org
Newly released Stockholm Declaration recommends the following reforms to publishing:

1. Academia resumes control of publishing

2. Incentive systems to merit quality, not quantity

3. Independent fraud detection and prevention

4. Legislation and policies to protect science quality and integrity
Reformation of science publishing: the Stockholm Declaration | Royal Society Open Science
Science relies on integrity and trustworthiness. But scientists under career pressure are lured to purchase fake publications from ‘paper mills’ that use AI-generated data, text and image fabrication....
royalsocietypublishing.org
November 5, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
healthcare.nikon.com
🕰️In November 2000, Nikon launched MicroscopyU, an online educational hub aimed at inspiring microscope users worldwide.

🌐MicroscopyU continues to be a trusted source of learning and inspiration.

🔗Explore tutorials, techniques & insights: microscopyu.com

#NikonMicroscopy
November 5, 2025 at 8:04 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
virginiagewin.bsky.social
"Science is being destroyed across many agencies" say federal researchers.

For my latest @nature.com piece, I spoke to 19 different scientists across EPA, NOAA, NIH, NASA, and USGS to document how science is being dismantled across US federal agencies.
Dismantling of US federal agencies will ‘destroy science’
From NASA to the National Institutes of Health, federal agencies conduct research that universities cannot. Agency scientists speak out about the irreplaceable facilities, institutional knowledge and ...
www.nature.com
November 4, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
labliston.bsky.social
A small 🧵 encouraging people to publish protocols.

Our #AutoSpectral release has made me reflect on how much the community tends to appreciate protocol papers. People rarely present protocols as their main achievements, but they are often the most impactful work.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
AutoSpectral improves spectral flow cytometry accuracy through optimised spectral unmixing and autofluorescence-matching at the cellular level
The advent of spectral flow cytometry has seen a rapid rise in the complexity of flow cytometry experiments, allowing the construction of assays with at least 50 fluorescent parameters. To correctly d...
www.biorxiv.org
October 31, 2025 at 9:09 AM
mlacyphd.bsky.social
To be clear, it's a very particular type of junk article (possibly completely fake), not "40% of all stroke research". But yeah, if you're doing a lit search on your gene of interest and come across papers that look like these, just say nope 🙅
October 31, 2025 at 9:48 AM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
kyt-thatsme.bsky.social
Anyone have book recommendations for graduate students for scientific writing and/or presenting ?
October 30, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Reposted by Mike Lacy
drmichaelway.bsky.social
Thinking we should make some monoclonal antibodies so wondering what experiences people have had with different companies, as it's not going to be cheap so want to get our moneys worth?
October 2, 2025 at 7:57 AM